Rollin Harlow Person (October 15, 1850 – June 2, 1917) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Born on a farm in

Iosco Township, Michigan Iosco Township is a civil township of Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,870 at the 2020 census, up from 3,801 at the 2010 census. Community *Parkers Corners, also Iosco, is an unincorporated community in th ...

, Person went to high school in Howell, Michigan. He then studied law at University of Michigan Law School and was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1873. Person and his wife moved to Nebraska where he practiced law, but " plague of grasshoppers which practically ruined that section of Nebraska in 1875 drove him back to Michigan","Rollin H. Person, Ex-Justice, Dies", ''Detroit Free Press'' (June 3, 1917), p. 14. and he returned to Howell to practice law. Person served as Michigan circuit court judge from 1891 to 1899. He advised Governor

Woodbridge N. Ferris Woodbridge Nathan Ferris (January 6, 1853March 23, 1928) was an American educator from New York, Illinois and Michigan who served as the 28th governor of Michigan and in the United States Senate as a Democrat. Early life in New York, Michigan a ...

during the Copper Country strike of 1913–14, and impressed the governor enough that when Justice

Aaron V. McAlvay Aaron Vance McAlvay (July 19, 1847 – July 9, 1915) was a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court from January 1, 1905, to July 9, 1915. Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, McAlvay's father was a Michigan farmer, and the son spent most of his early life, ...

died the following year, Ferris appointed Person to the vacant seat on the Michigan Supreme Court. Person served from 1915 to 1917, his term ending in January 1917 after he was defeated by

Grant Fellows Grant Fellows (April 13, 1865 – July 16, 1929) was an American jurist. Born in Hudson Township, Lenawee County, Michigan, Fellows went to Hudson High School in Hudson, Michigan. Fellows studied law and was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1886 ...

in a bid for reelection to the seat. Person died in

Lansing, Michigan Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, making ...

, at the age of 66, following an attack of indigestion.

References

1850 births 1917 deaths People from Iosco County, Michigan University of Michigan Law School alumni Nebraska lawyers Michigan lawyers Michigan state court judges Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers {{Michigan-politician-stub